Into the Past
by jellybean-kitty
Summary: Wouldn't you like chance to find out who you are? Where you came from? I can give you that chance.'
1. Prologue

This is a series of one shots based on the characters' childhoods. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own FF8.

Prologue

Ellone watched as eveyone gathered in the bridge of the Ragnarok. They seemed all on edge and they had a right to be. She had told them that they were to meet her on board the ship and that it was 'important'. Smiling softly, she greeted everyone as they took their seats and waited to begin. Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly sat beside each other holding hands in such a way that their engagement rings were in full view. Rinoa looked quite content, but then again she knew what this was all about. Squall, on the other hand, was tense as if he would have to spring into action at any moment. Opposite them were Selphie Tilmet and Irvine Kinneas who chatted quietly amongst themselves, occasionaly glimpsing at Ellone to see wither she was giving any indication about why they were there. Behind them sat Zell Dincht and Quistis Trepe. The latter looked at him in almost disgust as he crammed yet another Balamb Garden hotdog into his mouth.

At the very back seat sat Seifer Almasy. He'd put his feet up on the chair in front of him and had his head tilted in a cocky manner. His green eyes stared at Ellone intently as if challenging her to give him bad news. Not that he would have cared much. He had only come as 'special invitation'. Rather than sitting here with people that he knew very well hated him - why else with the ostricising? - he would enjoy nothing more than to take up residence in the Galbadian Hotel where he had taken to dwelling with his only friends Fujin and Raijin. He was not a stranger there, to say the least.

Finally, Ellone spoke. Her soft, almost musical, voice filled the heavy air. "I'm sure you're all wondering why I've asked you here." Squall immediately sat up in his seat, giving her full attention. "Thankfully, there's no crisis or problem cropt up that we need your help with. Quite the contrary." She paused for a minute as she thought the best way to put it. "I'm going to help you as a way of thanking you all for letting me get to know my past. I'm going to take you all to yours."

"Really?" Selphie asked. She jumped up and hopped around excitedly. "You can do that?"

Ellone smiled again. "Yes, it's quite simple." She noticed Squall frowning and looked at him gently. "Of course, if you have any objections, I would much rather hear them now than later."

"What if we don't want to know our past?" He demanded. "I, for one, am happy knowing the present. The past means nothing to me."

She titled her head to the side and her brown hair tilted with her. "Wouldn't you like chance to find out who you are? Where you came from? I can give you that chance." She walked forward and lightly placed her cool hands on his. "It's my gift."

"She's right," Rinoa added. "You may never get another chance to find this out."

He observed the two girls for a minute or two and smirked. They'd obviously been in cahoots. "...Alright."

"What do we have to do?" Quistis asked and thoughtfully folded her arms. "What is required of us?"

Ellone stifled a giggle. She had known what Quistis' reaction would be, just like she had with the others. "Nothing at all. It's just the same when I sent you into Uncle Laguna's past. You'll be sent into a comatose state until you wake." She gestured to the around her. "That's why I chose a secluded place like the here."

There was a chuckle at the back of the room and everyone turned around to look at Seifer who had now stood up and was making his way to the door. His boots clicked emptily on the metal flooring as he stepped.

"Seifer," Ellone called. "Don't tell me you're afraid of the past?"

Her voice, though still soothing and calm, had an accusing tone to it which caused Seifer to turn around midstep and glare at her.

"I don't need to know where I came from," He sneered. "Maybe _you_ can't live without it but I certainly can." He looked at a silver watch that decorated his wrists. "Besides I have places to be."

She walked towards him slowly and deliberately. "You don't have to be afraid, Seifer."

He gave her an incredulous look and retook his seat. "Who's afraid?" He muttered, putting his legs back against the seat in front.

"This procedure won't take long," Ellone continued as she made her way back to the front. "In a few seconds I will send you to sleep and you'll be taken into your past, into the events which happened before you came to Edea's orphanage and possibly afterwards." She closed her eyes as she began to concentrate. "I hope that any questions you have will be answered."

Ellone's good luck wish echoed through the room as a brilliant white light engulfed the entire room and slowly the occupiers fell into a deep and dreamfilled sleep. All of them.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please review!

jellybean-kitty


	2. Squall

Discliamer: I don't own FF8

Squall

A bead of sweat trickled down her pale face as she prepared for another contraption. Lord, she was in so much pain. She howled again as she felt another push and squeezed the nurses hand as hard as she possibly could. It wasn't fair she was only the person in the room who was in pain.

"Laguna!" She screamed. "Where are you?"

A nurse wiped her head with a towel. "Shhh, Raine. Concentrate on your baby. He's almost out."

Another nurse looked up in alarm as she took Raine's pulse. "Glenda, her heart rate is getting faster."

"You have to calm down, Raine, " Said Glenda. "This isn't good for you or the baby."

"I want Laguna," She wailed as yet another contraption took over her body.

Her long brown, almost black, hair was matted and some strands were stuck to her wet forehead. Her eyes had lost their usual shine as she called out for her love again and again but he never appeared.

"One last push honey," A distant voice called to her.

Complying, she pushed as hard as she could. A wave of relief followed by exhaustion washed over her and she fell back on to the hospital bed: defeated and deflated. Somewhere, far away from where she was, a baby cried. She held her arms out expectantly.

"My baby," She pleaded. "Let me see me baby."

A mass of blankets were handed to her and inside them she could see a tiny little face staring up at her.

"It's a boy." The voice said again.

Nodding slowly, she looked into her son's blue eyes and felt an instant connection that could only be shared by mother and child. A materal love. He had stopped crying and was gazing up at this familiar stranger. Though the room was crowded, only he and her were there. She could only see him and vice versa. The stranger began to stroke his cheek softly, tenderly.

"Squall..." Raine whispered to him. "Your name is Squall."

He looked at her as if he completely understood what she was saying, though he couldn't possibly.

"Her heart rate is falling."

Raine frowned. Why couldn't they just leave them alone? Suddenly, strong hands took the baby from her and Squall started to cry in protest. She yelled at them to leave her and him alone. Her demands were useless. They told her she needed rest. And she did. She was tired, so tired.

Her eyes began to droop. She felt exhausted. Her entire body seemed to have gotten heavier. She let her eyes closed and entered into a dreamworld: a world of happiness. Laguna was there with her and so was Squall. He smiled as she walked down the path and their reached out his hand to her. Holding out her own, they touched and interlinked their fingers. Allowing her body to fall into his, she felt his warm embrace and clutched him tightly. Beside them, Squall gurgled in his pram.

She never left that world again.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"We've lost her," A nurse said sadly and picked up Raine's hand which was hanging lifelessly down the side of the bed, placing it beside the rest of her body. She shook her head in sorrow. "Poor girl. She was so young, too."

"Shall I take her body to the morgue?" The other nurse offered.

"Yes. We'll deal with her son later. Let the nursery staff take care of him."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A sinister looking woman entered Winhill Hospital with revenge on her mind. Beside her, two loyal bodyguards pushed and shoved their way to the reception desk. The reception look up at the woman in fear.

"S-S-Sorceress Adel?" She stammered. "C-can I help you?"

A smirk appeared on her black lips and cracked across her blue-tinted skin. "I'm looking for a woman named Loire. She was supposed to have been delivering a child in this hospital."

Her voice sent shivers down the girl's spine. So monsterously calm yet filled with unknown malice. What on earth could she want with Raine?

Nurse Glenda appeared out of the doors of the maternity ward, hearing the hubbub. A sharp intake of breath entered her lips as she recognised the cluprit.

"Sorceress Adel," She said in a collected voice, nodding her head in respect. "How can I help you?"

Adel sneered at the women who obviously refused to show her fear. "Loire. Where is she?"

"I'm sorry," Glenda met her midnight and blood red eyes. "There were complications and Raine didn't survive the birth."

The sorceress cackled. "Excellent. And her child."

The wheels in her head were turning rapidly as she tried to think of what to say: was the truth the best option? She sighed sadly.

"Her son also died."

The heinous woman nodded in understanding as she took all of this in. "I want to see their bodies."

"Very well. I'll take you to the morgue."

She began to lead Adel down an empty corridor. Death was thick in its air. It was a stench Adel had grown to love and indeed, it filled her with an indescribable peace as she breathed it in deeper and deeper. Evenutally, she was lead into a cold room filled with many human sized drawers. Glenda opened the first fully and pulled back the cloth covering the body. A beautiful woman was revealed with long dark hair and pale skin. If it weren't for the fact her body remained motionless, Adel would think she was sleeping. Her keen eyes spied the only piece of jewellry the woman wore: a gold ring on her wedding finger.

"And the other one?" Adel's tone had a harsh yet gleeful lilt in it.

The nurse pulled open another drawer and revealed the body of a newly born baby boy. For a baby to be so still it was unnatural and Glenda had to look away from it's peaceful face.

Adel cackled. "He'll have no idea."

"What has he done to make you so scornful?" Glenda asked.

Adel's eyes narrowed. "He took away my pet. He stole my prize from me, my experiment." She sneered. "But now he's lost something important, too." She turned on her heels and walked out of the morgue, leaving Glenda alone.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What will we do about Squall, Glenda?"

She looked up at her colleague from where she was filling out some sort of certificate. "We'll send him to the Kramer Orphanage." She finished what she was doing and held up the certificate in approval. "His name will be Squall Leonhart. No one will know otherwise."

"What about Laguna? What if he comes back?"

"Then we'll tell him, Joyce. But him and no one else." She sighed deeply. "What times we live in when we have to lie about a baby's birth." She looked outside her office window where the pain was pounding on the street belowe her. "I shall him him taken away tonight."

Joyce nodded and scurried out of the office to prepare the baby for departure.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Four days later an unaccountable fire destroyed the hospital. No staff survived.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please review!

jellybean-kitty xx


	3. Rinoa

Disclaimer: I don't own FF8

Rinoa

The sound of a piano could be heard resonating through the halls of the halls of the Caraway mansion. Rinoa Caraway ran through it's many long and twisting corridors following the beautiful sound that told her her mother, Julia Caraway, had started practising. She stopped outside a closed door: her mother's 'study'. This room was offbounds to her father, visitors and even the housestaff. But not Rinoa. Even at such a young age of five, she had already been able to tell that her mother gave her special treatment. She giggled as she heard her mother stop playing. This had always been a favourite game of theirs.

"Is that daddy outside my door?" Her mother called in her gentle voice.

"Nooo." Rinoa called back.

There was the sound of a foot tapping as if Julia was having difficulty thinking who it was. "It is Mrs. Gren?"

Rinoa laughed at the very thought of their cook wanting to listen to her mother's playing. "No!"

Julia walked forward and Rinoa saw her shadow underneath the door. "It couldn't possibly be my little Rinoa?"

The door opened and Rinoa rushed in, her long black hair flowing behind her as if it couldn't keep up with her speed. Julia laughed affectionately as her daughter climbed onto the piano stool and fixed herself so that her little legs complete with her white ankle socks and patent black shoes were dangling over the edge. Her blue knee length dress had become ruffled in the process and Julia tenderly tugged and pulled at it until it was sitting perfectly. She then took her position on the stool beside Rinoa and arched her hands over the keys as she prepared to play. After a few seconds of what looked like mental preparation and without warning, her fingers began to gracefully play a mellow yet melanchonious melody which Rinoa listened to in fascination. She hadn't heard this one before.

"When did you make this one up, mommy?" She asked in the confusion only a child's voice can have.

Julia smiled serenly. "Yesterday. I was thinking about the brave knight I tell you of in our bedtime stories and I wanted a theme to go along with it." She looked down at her daughter, never stopping playing. "Would you like to hear a story?"

She clasped her hands in glee. "Yes, please!"

"All right," She started the entire song again, softly. "Once, before you were born and before mommy met daddy, there was a brave and handsome knight. He was in the army of that time and very often he'd come to the hotel where mommy worked so he could listen to me play the piano." She laughed. "He thought that I'd never noticed him but everytime I saw him there, I seemed to be able to play that much better. I saw that once or twice he had tried to talk to me but he was just to scared."

Rinoa wrinkled her nose. "I thought you said he was brave?"

"There are many different types of braveness, Rinoa. His was on the battlefield but when it came to talking to women, well he was pretty much a scaredycat. But one night, I did the most unexpected thing. I went over to his table to talk to him and invite him up to my room." She shook her head and gazed up at the ceiling. "I remember sitting on my bed, waiting for him to come and thinking, 'Oh my goodness! He isn't coming.'"

"But he came?"

The music reached a great cresendo. "He came. And there was an instant connection between us. We talked and talked for hours: our hopes, dreams, fears. I knew then that I had fallen in love. When he left, I wrote my very first lyrical song and it turned out to be a great hit!"

"I like that song, mommy," Rinoa informed her. "But what happened to the knight?"

Julia's smile reflected the pain in her heart as she talked of him. The music modulated into a minor key. "I never saw him again. He disappeared altogether from the army. I was so heartbroken that when I met your father, I was instantly smitten and, desperate to find love again, I gave in to his consoling presence and agreed to marry him." Rinoa noticed she had stopped playing and innocently plodded some of the keys. "But, can you keep a secret?" Rinoa nodded eagerly. "I always some day dreamed that my brave knight would come and take me away." She tickeled her daughter's tummy. "But then I had you and that made my life just complete."

"Mommy!" She protested. Julia stopped and looked at her daughter fondly and stroked her hair. "If you ever met the knight again, would you go away with him?"

"Yes, Rinoa I would. And I'd take you with me."

Rinoa looked puzzled for a second then worried. "But what about daddy?"

Julia sighed sadly but said nothing more. Instead, she allowed her music to fill the silence. Rinoa, instantly forgetting her concerns, rested her head against her mother's body and listened in contentment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tiptoeing out of bed, Rinoa followed the direction where she could hear the angry voices of her parent's agueing. She'd been hearing it a lot more often that she ever had. Taking special care not to step on the floorboards that she knew would creak and give her away, she crept towards their room and listened from outside, peering through the crack where the door had been left open, slightly ajar.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Julia? Stop filling Rinoa's head with these foolish fantasies about you and Laguna! _I'm _the man you married, not him. What did he do? He left you alone and moved on to another woman!" Rinoa had never heard her father so angry.

"That's not true!" Julia's voice almost cracked with the tears. "He was injured and unable to contact me. He loved me!" Julia's cheek was suddenly slapped viciously and Rinoa visibly flinched. She had heard that sound often before. "You bastard!" Julia cried.

"Julia," the General's voice softened noticably. "You need to stop living in this faery tale you've concocted for yourself. This is the life you now live in. Laguna's left you and you didn't wait for him either. The last he probably heard was that you married me." He cupped Julia's head in his cheek. "You have to stop living this lie."

She jerked her head away and turned her back to him. "One day," She whispered venemously. "One day, I'm going to leave you and take Rinoa with me."

He laughed as if it was all one big joke and got into bed. Seeing the commotion was all over, Rinoa almost sprinted back to hers. She didn't care who heard her. When she got back into her bed, she pulled the quilt up to her chin and allowed her tears to come out freely. She never understood why daddy hit mommy. Didn't he love her? He said he loved Rinoa and he never hit her. She tried to shut her eyes but everytime she did, she saw that awful scene play again and again in her mind.

Nights like this, she never did get much sleep.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a bleak winter's day and Rinoa sat cross legged in her room playing with her favourite doll. Once or twice, she looked out her bedroom window to watch the snowflakes dance in the wind and wish that, more than anything, she could be out dancing with them. But she had a cold and the doctor had told her to stay inside at all times. It was unfair. All the other children she played with had gone out to build snowmen and sledge but she hadn't been able to. Bitterly, she flung her doll down and folded her arms. The only consollation was that Julia was coming back soon with a new doll for her to play with since she had been such a good girl. She frowned. That had been this morning and it was almost teatime. Why wasn't her mother back yet?

Somewhere in the great house, the telephone rang but she paid it no attention and picked her doll back up and hugged it tightly: apologising for any injuries she may have after her sudden crash to the floor. As soon as she was sure she had been forgiven, she resumed her little game and hummed a song to herself.

The door to her room opened and she turned around excitedly, thinking Julia had finally come back. To her disappointment, however, it was only her father who smiled at her sadly. She saw there were tears in his eyes that had obviously not spilled. Instinctively, she ran over and gave him a massive hug which he returned.

"Rinoa," He whispered. "The most terrible thing has happened."

-------------------------------------------------------------

Please review!

jellybean-kitty


	4. Seifer

Disclaimer: I don't own FF8

Seifer 

In the middle of a forest in Centra, not far from where an orphanage had recently been established, there was a quaint and secluded little town. It was ruled by its own government: a council consiting of the elders and gentry. It bothered no one and, in turn, no one bothered it. Though it held communications with Esther, Galbedia and even Balamb, it took no part in any of the quarrels and battles that the other continents had with each other. It had no need to. It existed by itself and by itself it was most happy.

It was the only civilisation in the barren Centra lands, apart from the forementioned orphange which was set up by a young woman and her husband who origined from the Town of Centra. Their names were Edea and Cid Kramer. Their work was much admired by the villagers who were more than happy, no obliged to assist them in any way they could, be it to supply food at next to nothing prices or clothes shipped in from the more affluent Galbedia. Anyone who was willing to devote their entire lives to the orphans of the Sorceress wars deserved to be aided in any way possible.

The entire Town was ruled, though the word was never used, by Baron Almasy and his wife, Lady Almasy, who lived in a mansion even deeper within the forest than the rest of the occupants. The two were very well respected who could never do enough for their community, no matter what the demands may be. All they wished was to maintain the peace that the rest of the world seemed unable to keep in their grasp. And indeed, peaceful was the very world to describe the entire settlement.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Seifer," A beautiful woman with her voice as soft and gentle as her facial features called from her window and looked over her entire estate. Somewhere in the middle of her private forest, her son was playing and it was time for him to come home. She smiled as she heard the almighty crash of her son running into the main foyer of their mansion as he ran up to see her. Her pearly white teeth gleamed as her smile widened at the sight of Seifer running into the drawing room where she sat on the window ledge.

"Yes, mother?" His voice - the only thing that betrayed the fact that he was matured more than his seven years- came out in gasps and his young cheeks were tinged red from the bitter weather.

"I want you to stay inside for the rest of the night," Her emerald green eyes scanned the horizon warily. " I can sense a storm approaching." She absentmindedly twirled her mass of blonde curls in between her fingertips as she spoke.

Seifer nodded. Whenever his mother made a prediction, no matter what the subject, she was always right. "Yes, mother."

She held out her pale arms. "Come here." Her son made no hesitation in sitting on her knee where she stroked his short blonde hair. He could breathe her floral scent. "I need you to be wary when you are out in the estate from now on. I know you probably won't heed my warning, but there are people out there who are looking for children like you to...take away."

His young emerald eyes instantly sparked their concern. "Is it to do with what you are?"

Taking in a deep breath, she looked are him carefully. "...Yes."

"I thought so." He told her. "Where is father?"

"He is in the town, dealing with buisiness and such tribulations relating to his position." She sighed. "Matters are cropping up more and more often." She looked out of the window again as Seifer still didn't take his eyes off of her. "I'm sure the other children have told you that a war is going on?" She sensed Seifer nodding. "It seems that, for all use this little town will be, the greater powers are wanting our aid, though we don't want to give them it." Her gaze returned to her son's face. Most of his features had been inherited from his handsome father: the strong brows and jawline, for example. However, the more evident qualities - eye and hair colour- she'd proudly given him. "I hope know never to talk to the strangers that come to our town?"

"I know." Seifer confirmed.

She said nothing more but sighed again and allowed Seifer to escape from her presence, though she knew escape was a too formidable a word to use. There was now always a fear in her heart whenever she allowed Seifer to roam the forest where they lived. Though she could always sense his whereabouts, there would always be a time when her ability failed her and then what? Her son would be taken away to the power of Esthar where she knew a heinous sorceress ruled. If anything happened to her son her life would not be worth living.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Seifer's ears almost pricked up as he heard the familiar sound of his father's boots stalk into their front foyer as he came back from the council. Rushing out of his room immediately, he ran through the mansion to greet his open arms. It was a normal tradition that whenever he returned home, Seifer would always be the first to greet him and he waited for his greeting. There was a chuckle as a blur in the shape of a young boy ran into his arms and Seifer found himself being scooped up into the air.

"Seifer, I hope you've been behaving yourself?" His father asked and twiddled the ends of his dark brown moustache.

A laugh that had the same resounding in the air has a bell tinkled from behind him. Baron Almasy turned around and kissed his wife.

"As always." She assured him before takinf Seifer from his arms and placing him back down on the floor. "Perhaps you should wait in the front dining room?"

Without needing to be told a second time, Seifer set off in the direction of their main eating room but stopped as soon as he got gotten through the first door where he peered through the keyhole and spied on his parents. It was a favourite pastime of his when life in the mansion got too boring and he could find nothing else to occupy his time.

"Darling," the Baron said almost sternly. "There were new visitors from Galbedia in town today. They were quizzing me about your activities with the townspeople." The Lady raised an enquizitive eyebrow. "They were suspicious about your charitable tendicies to use your magic for the benefit of the population."

"Oh, honestly!" She exclaimed. "I only ever use my magic to help people."

"I know that, but strangers don't. But that's not the only reason I wanted to take this up with you." He paused for a few seconds as he thought of the best way to put what he had to say. "I've heard rather distressing news from them that sorceresses from all over the world are being persecuted by Adel." His hand tenderly scooped her face and titled it towards him. "I don't want to see anything like that happen to you."

She blinked several times. "Why would she bother with a town as distant as this one? We're of no benifit to have under her power. And I am perfectly harmless, as she should know if her powers are so great." She stopped suddenly. "Let's continue this talk another time."

Her eyes darted towards the door and Seifer fell back from the intensity of her gaze. Obviously, she knew he was there and listening in. Chasting himself mentally, he ran from the door and into their dining room where he was shortly joined by his none-the-wiser father and a stern looking mother. Not once during their meal could he meet her intensifying stare.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Thunder clapped later on that evening as the small family sat in the drawing room together. The rain was pouring so hard it seemed as if it were a river that was streaming from the sky. Everyso often lightning clashed and flashed from outside of the window so violently that even Lady Almasy seemed a little nervous, though she was more worried that too violent a storm would result in a power cut to their house: a problem that would remain unresolved until the next morning. She felt a hand on her knee and turned to face her smiling husband.

"Darling," He said, "there's no need to worry."

Her face didn't cease to frown. "Perhaps, but I hadn't predicted a storm of this calibre. I can't help but feel a little uneasy."

"But, you have your knight here."

Seifer looked at his futher in genuine bafflement. "You're a knight?"

Baron Almasy laughed. "Not really, no. But I am a sorceress knight. That's a knight who shares a special relationship with a sorceress. He is her shoulder to lean on when her powers of magic become too strong for her. Without a knight, a sorceress will not last long in this world before her mind is completely lost." He looked lovingly at his Lady and then to his son. "It is a tradition going back generations of my family. Why, my father was a knight and his father before him and his father before him." He layed a hand on Seifer's shoulder. "One day, you'll be a knight too."

His mother tittered like a school girl. "It'll be your romantic dream. You'll fall for a girl who'll be a sorceress. It's fate."

Seifer made a face. "I don't believe in romance."

"No," his father agreed. "At your age no one does. But you're mother is quite right. It is fate. It will happen." The two adults smiled at each other. "Just like it did for us."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Seifer woke up in the middle of the night to the cries of people screaming. Fearfully, he rose from his bed and ran into his parents' room. They were already up. Without saying a word, Lady Almasy grabbed his hand and dragged him through the mansion to to the kitchens and from there to the servant's quarters where she shoved him into a secret door on the wall. All the while, he could hear the cries of terror coming from outside the house and he could smell the distinctive scent of wood burning. He protested to his mother to tell him what was going on but she merely hugged him and told him to run, no matter what he heard. She shut the door on him and he heard her run in the opposite direction.

He was torn. On the one hand, he could obey his mother and run away from the trouble. But his more curious nature told him to find out just was going on in their rural town. Shaking the feeling of terror out of his entire body, he made his way to the drawing room where he could get a view of the entire town. What he saw shocked him. Every building was on fire and people were desperately trying to climb over the gates to the state. The sky was amassed with smoke and flames and the fire had even spread itself to the forest. Then he spied army trucks driving up to their gates and knocking them down: the people with it. From each of the five trucks, five men jumped out and began pounding on the front door screaming that they wanted the sorceress. Seifer's breath caught in his throat. It was his mother they were after. He turned on his heel and sprinted to the front foyer, shouting for his mother all the while. He found her casting a barrier spell on the door. He could see the pale blue light resignating from her finger tips. Beside her, her father was stationed with a gunblade and there were servants beside him ready to die for their Lady.

"Mother!" He cried to her.

She broke her spell off and ran to him, clutching him tightly. "Seifer, my love." She said in a voice so full of fear that it was almost unrecognisable. "You must run from here." She held him at arms length and fixed her emerald eyes on his. "Promise me that you will."

He shook his head. "I can't leave you here."

"You must," Her voice cracked as tears formed in her eyes. "You must."

"Where will I go?"

"There is an orphanage west of here. Go there and explain the situation. They will care for you." She embraced him one last time before pushing him away in the direction from where he came. For a few seconds, she thought he wasn't going to go but his legs began to move on their own accord as she completely forgot the barrier spell and instead cast a haste spell on her son so he moved faster than he had ever thought possible. She watched him leave her sight just as the doors came crashing down. Then she prepared for battle.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Seifer heard the almighty crash of their door being knocked down but his legs refused to turn back. Instead, they carried him further down the tunnel which led from the servants quarters until he was out of the mansion altogether. Now, he was running through the forest. The usual friendliness of the trees had turned into enemies under the moonlight and the macabre smell of death was in the air. Even at his young age, he could tell that all the entire Town was doomed and those with in it didn't stand his chance. As he ran, tears began to pour down his cheeks as he heard the sound of a woman screaming from somewhere in the distance. It may not be his mother, but his heart told him otherwise. That meant that his father, too, had fallen. Inevitably, that meant that he was now alone. His only hope was this orphanage his mother spoke of. He didn't know where it was, but his legs seemed to carry him there all the same.

It was his mother's parting gift.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please review!

jellybean-kitty


	5. Quistis

This probably isn't what you expect for the lovely Ms. Trepe but here it is none the less.

Disclaimer: I don't own FF8

Quistis 

The doorbell rung in the small home beloning to the Trepe family. Quistis looked expectantly at her mom, waiting for that slow nod that gave her permission to answer it and then went up to the door. She opened it just enough so that nothing was being revieled except her face and also double checked that the chain on the door was fastened so that enrty could not be forced if this wasn't one of the nicer callers. Inspecting the man peering in at her, she decided to keep the door as it was.

"Hello there," He said gruffly yet cheeryfully none the less. "Are your parents home?"

Quistis shook her head firmly, her long, blonde ponytail swinging behind her. "There's no one home." The answer had been perfectly rehearsed so many times it was almost second nature.

The man smiled, not quite believing her but not planning on challenging her either. "Tell them that Bobby wants his money."

She made no comment but shut the door in his face - gently so that he wouldn't get angry like some of the others did. Making sure he had left the doorstep, she walked the short length it took her to get into the kitchen where her mom sat puffing at a cigarette. Over her eyes, there was a glazed look and she smiled serenly as if she wasn't a part of this world. Quistis sighed. It seemed she'd have to get her own breakfast again this morning. Her mother never was much use when she'd had some of the 'special' injections.

"Who was it, darling?" Her laungage was slurred so much that only her daughter would be able to interperate it.

"It was one of the men. He said Bobby wanted his money."

"Bobby always wants his money..." Her mother scowled at the needle lying on the breakfast counter as if it was entirely its fault that she was in debt. And in a funny way, it was. That sweet, addictive substance injected into her skin by it, giving her a sublime elation. "Daddy will give him it when he has it."

Quistis said nothing back to her as she took out a cereal bowl from the lower cupboards. Even at her young age, she was more than able to look after herself and her parents when they were incapable. It surprised her mother to no end how her daughter had been able to teach herself these survival skills. Lord knows they hadn't been taught at home. Where her intelligence came from was beyond her: certainly not inherited from the her. Nor her father. The best he could do was a poorly paid factory job in the nearby iron works that required no degree, no outstanding education and no thought what so ever. They were the lowest of the classes: druggies, junkies. But not Quistis. She was born for something better. Her mother knew it. Why had God been so cruel as to plant a special girl like her daughter with the scum of the earth like her? It wasn't fair. Even though she was only six, she had surpassed the other children in her year by so much she had been moved up to a higher grade and even then she still whizzed by.

Quistis sat scooping spoonfuls of some cut price chocolate cereal that was probably well past its sellby date and watched her mother carefully. If she was going to go to school today, she would have to make sure that her mother would be able to look after herself while she was away. It worried her that one of those men would come into their house again. The first time it had happened, she had been locked in one of the cupboards by her father and told not to make a sound. She had heard some sort of kerfuffle and when she was allowed back out, her father had a broken nose and a black eye. Her mother had one that matched.

"Quistis, darling," Her mother said with as much fondness as she was capable of in this state. "You should be on your way to school. The bus will be here soon." Standing up unsteadily, she walked up to her daughter and stroked that silky blonde hair, much like her own used to be before she had got messed with the junk. They even shared the same crystal blue eyes. But Quistis' showed superior intelligence where as her own just told strangers that she dealed a little too much with her drugs.

"Yes, mommy."

Quistis quickly finished emptied the bowl and put in the sink, planning on cleaning it when she got back in from school. She went upstairs and brushed her teeth, collected her schoolbag and waited outside with her mom. It didn't often happen that her mother was capable of making sure she got to school alright so today was an exception. As the bus stopped, they kissed each other goodbye and she got onto it.

Her mother watched as the bus drove off. She always tried to see that her daughter was at school. She knew that there had been occasions when Quistis had actually had to skip school becuase of her lacking parental skills. It was just so hard for her. Since the age of sixteen, she had been drawn into the attractive world of the 'cool' older teens that weren't afraid to take some of the junk. It was the worst mistake she'd ever made. From a stunning teenager, she slowly transformed into the people that she used to make bitchy comments about when she and her friends walked past them in the street: all becuase she took a risk and became hooked. Before she was twenty, she met her husband. He'd also tried drugs and became an addict. Before long, she'd become pregnant and they got married in a low budget wedding chapel. Her parents had long since disowned her and her choice of life, rather than helping her get through it. Now she had no chance of going into rehab for fear that her beloved daughter would be taken for her. Selfish, she knew. Quistis would have a much better life if she wasn't stuck with her junkie parents but she just couldn't say goodbye.

She went back into her house, still in her house coat and pyjamas, to go back into her bed. That way she could sleep through most of her downer and wake up in time for her next dose. She laughed bitterly at that thought. The most she had to worry about in life was when she could have her next injection of heroine. Even her own daughter almost didn't compare.

* * *

She woke up a with a start short while later by the banging on her front door. Panic overcame her as she nervously crept out of her bed and peered through the window to see if she could get a glimpse of her unexpected visitor. It was a lady, strangely enough, who was dressed in a well tailored suit and was clutching a briefcase to her side as she continued to knock and ring the doorbell consistently. 

"Mrs. Trepe," She called in a highly professional manner. "I know you're in there. Please let me in. I want to help you."

Timidly, Mrs. Trepe crawled down the stairs slowly, hoping that by the time she got to the door this mysterious woman would be gone: though a part of her was intrigued by what she had to offer a lowlife like herself. Despite what she'd taught her daughter, she opened the door fully and invited the woman into her sitting room. At a first glance, she thought she could see pity in her eyes as she looked shrewdly at her home, but then she saw that there was also sadness, understanding and most of all, a willingness to help her out.

She extended a hand which Mrs. Trepe accepted. "My name is Moira Book. I'm from the Deling City Child Protection League. Your child's school has been in contact with me about unexcused absences and they tell me that Quistis perhaps doesn't get the bringing up a child of her ability should be." She took a file from her briefcase and handed it over to the other woman who looked as if she was doped up on something. "This is a from which gives us permission to take Quistis away from here." Mrs. Trepe looked up and, even through the glazedness, Moira could see there was fear in them. She layed a hand consolingly on hers. "Please hear me out. I know that you have a problem with drugs and I also know that as a direct result of that, Quistis will never have the chance to achieve the things in life she can and should. If you give me the chance, I can take her to a place where she'll have all those life chances that you never had and can never offer her. Of course, you'll have permission to see her whenever you want to and we'll offer you the chance to go into a drug rehabilitation programme. And your husband too."

For a second or two, Mrs. Trepe said nothing but looked sadly at the paper given to her. "I know, for Quistis' sake, this is the right thing to do." There were now tears in her eyes as she took a pen from the table and slowly signed her name. She knew that this is what Quistis needed in order to properly live her life and get something out of it. It wasn't the first time people from the DCCPL had come round and normally she'd shun them. But not this time. This time, she had to let go of this selfishness that had been keeping her beautiful daughter prison here. "We've never been goof parents to her. She's better off without us."

Moira smiled. "You're a better parent than you think and no matter what, she'll always love you." Taking the from from her blue-tinged hands which were stained yellow from all the tobacco she'd smoked, she offered her a tissue to wipe her eyes. "We'll pick her up today. I think the sooner, the better. Shall I pack her things or do you want to do it?"

"I will.

* * *

Quistis came home from school at her normal time. She was dropped off outside her house, as normal, she called to her neighbour, as normal, but just up the street their was an expensive looking car, not normal. Puzzled, rung the doorbell of her house in three consecutive blasts - just as she was taught to- but to her surprise a strange woman answered the door in place of her mother. Backing away slightly, she frowned at this smartly dressed lady whose gentle smile was too caring for her liking. 

"Where's my mommy?" She demanded, putting her hands on her hips.

"Darling," Mrs. Trepe called. There was a deep sorrow in her voice that Quistis could not understand. "I'm in the sitting room."

Shoving past the stranger, Quistis ran to her mother and recoiled in shock. Her eyes were red raw as if she had been crying non stop and, with her normal dark rims underneath, she harldy looked liked the mother she wanted to cuddle. Still, she was her mother none the less and she took refuge in her arms.

"Oh, darling," she said to her, "I'm sorry. I love you." Quistis pulled back from her and noticed, for the first time, the suitcase on the sofa but her favourite teddy bear on top. "Your going to live away for a while with people who can take care of you and give you a better life than you have here."

Her mouth went suddenly dry and her eyes filled with tears as she took all this in. "I don't want to go anywhere, mommy! I want to stay here, with you and daddy!"

Mrs. Trepe gently stroked her face. "It's better this way. You can get yourself out of this life. You're too good for it." She hugged her once again. "We'll always love you and we'll visit all the time."

Quistis shook her head. "Mommy..."

"Will you take her to my car?" Moira asked as she took ahold of the suitcase and bear.

Taking her little hand, Mrs. Trepe led Quistis into the Mercedes Benz that Moira owned and strapped her into the seat. She kissed her forehead and closed the door, ignoring both her and her daughter's tears.

* * *

For months, Mr and Mrs. Trepe made weekly trips to Edea Kramer's Orphanage in the Centre continent: trips that were founded by the DCCPL. They stopped shortly after a year when both parents died of drug overdoses. They never were accepted into rehab.

* * *

Please review!

jellybean-kitty xx


	6. Selphie

Disclaimer: I don't own FF8

Selphie 

"Wheeee!" Selphie Tilmett screamed as she rode on her new chocobo, he father holding her firmly in place whilst trying to keep ahold of the reins. For being only five years old, she was already showing a flare in chocobo riding which was ideal for when she starting helping out at the chocobo ranch the family ran. Their's was the only ranch in Galbedia and they were paid handsomly by the army for the chocobos they used for the cavalry.

"All right little lady," Frank Tilmett said as he halted the chocobo beside the mount and allowed Selphie to climb off before dismounting himself. He handed the reigns to his son so he could help put the chocobo into a stall for feeding time. Selphie excitedly bounded after him, firing questions at him a mile a minute. Farnk chuckled lightly to himself as he watched his two children. Selphie was the exact double -personality wise- of her mother: they shared the same spunky attitude that made people love them instantly. Frank Jnr was sullen like his father and as stubborn as a chocobo with a thorn in it's foot whenever he didn't want to do something: again like his father. Both the children inherited the family's brown hair and wide eyes though Selphie, contrary to the normal tallness of the woman in the Tilmett family tree, was puny. It all added the her cuteness that made her daddy's little girl. He and his daughter shared a special bond that he didn't even have with his son and heir.

Junior came up to him with two full buckets of ghysal greens. "Which two get these? This list didn't say."

"Goldie and Choco, the military ones." Frank told him. "And make sure the rest get a mixed bucket. We can't have the riding chocobos get too much strength or the kids won't be able to handle 'em." Nodding silently, Junior trudged off with Selphie not far behind carrying a bucket of water. The chocobos were all ready squawking in impatience as they waited for their feed and Junior had to almost jump out of the way to avoid a hungry beak. Frank had to stop himself for laughing. It was quite a sight watching his fourteen year old boy almost being outthought by a bird. Selphie, the apple of his eye, only needed to reach up - on her tip toes- and stroke the gleaming golden feathers of the bird to be allowed entry without any hassle. There seemed to be an understanding among the animals as well as humans: the young get special treatment. It was true. The chocobos let the junior riders off with kicking them too hard or pulling at their bits so much that their necks were craned like a mesmoerize's without even so much as a tiny buck or spread of wings to show their annoyance. If an adult did it, however, there would be hell to pay. Those big chocobos could put up one heck of a fight when they wanted to so much that even a grendel would want to avoid them.

"Daddeee!" Selphie cried running towards him. He scooped her up in his arms and she shrieked with glee. "Can we go get dinner now?"

Junior came up behind them both with his hands in his pockets. "The chocobos are fed and watered."

"Then we can go get dinner now," He said putting Selphie back on the group. "But first wash up." He lightly kicked Selhie on her backside as she skipped into her house, greeting her mother with a quick hello. Frank looked at his son who nodded an unspoken agreement. He would go check his little sister washed up properly.

He uttered a simple word to his mother as she pulled the oven open to radiate a huge waft of steam in his direction. He sniffed the air. She was cooking venison. He continued onto their downstairs toilet where Selphie was trying to find the soap and work the taps at the same time. The result? An almighty mess.

"Seffie," He used his pet name for her as he hoisted her over the sink so she could get better access, "you should get me to help ya." He tried not to shout when she splashed water all down his face by accident, flattening his normally unruly hair.

"Sorry." She mumbled as she turned off the tap and grabbed for a towel. Junior placed her down on the floor again and then began to wash his own hands. "When are those men comin' for Choco and Goldie?" She asked out of the blue. Junior knew the ones she meant.

"Tomorrow."

"I don't like them," Selphie said in a voice much quiter than her usual. "They scare me somethin' aweful."

"Well if they ever say anything to ya, ya come runnin' to me. Okay?" She nodded. "Let's go get tea. Mom made venison."

"Woohoo!" Selphie cried as she ran into the kitchen, narrowly missing a collision with her mom who rubbed her brown bangs fondly and readjusted her dungarees which had gotten twisted from all her darting about. Getting her daughter to stand still long enough was an effort.

When Junior had joined them, folded his hands and said grace before tucking into the delicious feast Emily Tilmett had prepared.

* * *

Selhpie hid in the barn and peekd through the wooden slits as she spied on her parents and the Galbedian soldiers. She stuck her toungue out at them. She hated them. They always made the chocobos nervous and that made her nervous. The chocoboc weren't scared easily so anything that did scare them in turn scared her. There was something about the blue uniform and the guns or swords attached to them. It didn't match. Blue, in Selphie's opinion, was a happy colour. It was the colour of the sky and the sea: happy things. So why had these soldier's disgraced it by sporting it on their uniforms. It should be an sad colour, like black or grey. Those were the colours that came with things that made her good moods disappear, like rain clouds and night. She barely looked at her brother as he settled down on the greens beside her and peered through the cracks too. 

"What's been happenin'?" He asked keeping his voice down low.

"Nuttin' much." Was Selphie's reply, frowning. "They've been getting red in the face 'bout somethin' daddy's been sayin'. That big one's been the most trouble."

They were both silent for a few minutes as they continued to watch closely. There was obviously some major misunderstanding as the three soldier's began getting more aggressive and more than once, Emily had to hold her hands up to calm them down, looking around her in worry should the children hear. Junior swallowed. "Seffie, if something happens today, you gotta promise me you'll do what I tell ya, okay?"

For the first time since the soldier's came, Selphie tore her eyes away from them, this time focussing them on her big brother. "What d'ya mean?"

Junior shook his head dismissively but couldn't help feel the tension rise in his hackles as, more than once, the biggest soldier reached for his gun. Frank had warned them that one day, the Galbedian's wouldn't be so cooperative about paying for the chocobos and if that day came, they didn't know what would happen. Junior knew that the Galbedian army wasn't to be messed with. He'd heard that one of the kid's -in his class at school- parents got into trouble with them. He never saw that kid again. "Just promise me."

She nodded solemnly and began to watch the soldiers again. Somewhere not so far off, the chocobos began to squawk in the pitch that showed they were restless about something. They weren't the only ones. Junior put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it tightly.

Out in the yard, their father was gesturing wildly to the chocobos and narrowing his eyes. They caught the odd words: money, greed, never; but they had no idea just what was happening. That was until the soldier's pulled out their guns. Emily screamed and Frank seemed taken aback. Before he knew what was happening a shot had rang out and Emily clutched her heart before collapsing onto the ground. Dead. Selphie was about to scream when Juniors hand clamped over her mouth. He mentally willed her to be quiet, not to make a sound, and as if she could hear his thoughts she didn't but stared in horror as her mother's dead body lay on the ground, her long brown hair mixing with the dirt and dust. Junior could feel Selhpie's tears run over his hand and down his cheek he could feel his own. Still, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the sight of his beautiful, loving mother's body so lifeless.

"Bastard!" Frank cried at the one who pulled the trigger and flew at him, wrestling him to the ground as if he was an igiun. The fight didn't go far until another shot resounded from a second gun pulled by the biggest soldier. This time, Selphie screamed as the side of her father's head was blown clean off. The three soldiers turned to the burn and began to approach it.

"When I tell you too," Junior whispered, pulling her to a stack of greens which was right beside the barn door, "run as away as fast as you can." Her tear stricken face turned to him in alarm. He could read it clearly. "I'll stay here and stall 'em while you get away." His keen eyes watched the soldiers closely as the came gradully nearer, weapons at the ready. Placing his hand on Selphie's back, he got ready to push her away. "Now!"

Selphie felt herself spring into action as she ran as fast as she could past the bewildered soldiers. Junior pushed a bale of greens on top of them before escaping himself but as he ran past, one of them grabbed his ankle and he hit the ground, instantly winded. Kicking wildly, he tried to pry his foot away but the firm and strong grip refused to give him leway. Instead, the body connected to it crawled forward and cocked a gun. As the gun was pressed to his temple, Junior met the man's muddy brown eyes, showing to emotion. It was the last thing he saw as the trigger was pulled.

* * *

Selphie heard another shot. Despite knowing her brother had told her not too, she changed direction and ran back the way she came. Her legs were lead rods, or so it seemed, as she raced to the barn and stopped at the door, clinging to it as she screamed at the sight she saw. Her brother was lying amongst a fallen bale of greens which were stained an unnatural red colour. Timidly, she crept towards the body and was about to turn it over so she could see his face when her hand was grabbed from behind.

"I wouldn't do that." The voice was from one of the soldiers but it showed more feeling than what she though they were capable of. There was almost sympathy there. "You don't want to see it." Furiously, Selphie began to hit the man as hard as she could on his leg -the highest height she could reach- with her weak little hands. He made no move to stop her. "What are we to do with this one?" He asked his comrade who merely shrugged. "I guess we could send her to Edea Kramer's orphanage, right?"

Again he shrugged. "She'd be better off dead."

"I don't like killing children. There's something not right with it." He sighed. "Right now she's just another war orphan. She's best going where all the other orphans go." He picked her up and took her to his vehicle, followed by his fellow soldiers. Shaking his head, he looked at another family that's been ruined. It wasn't right

* * *

Please review!

jellybean-kitty


	7. Zell

Geez its been a while since this has been updated, huh? Well the only reason I'm doing it is becuase I'm retiring from FanFiction soon and I don't want to leave any story unfinished. That means this too. However, there's only one more chapter to go and then the Epilogue so its not exactly going to take a long time:P Anyway, if anyone reads this I hope you enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy

Zell

Looking at the picture of his grandfather in full military uniform, Zell tried to mimic the position. Like his father and his father before him and his father before, Zell knew, at the young age of five years old, that was what he wanted to do too. Military training was in his blood. Even his mother was in the Balamb Naval Armada. While the Sorceress War continued tediously, his parents – against their initial wishes- had been summoned to action and duty. As a result, Zell had been sent to live with his aunt and uncle from his mothers side.

The army blood didn't run in her side of the family. She had been the black sheep of the family by nature. Not in a negative way, however, as her parents, reluctant as they were for their daughter to follow such a path, always believed that their children should do whatever it is they want and what was right for them. Lou, having always shown interest in all military related issues, decided at sixteen joining the Navy was the best career option for her. It was there she had met Chalmer Dintch. Quite by accident. She had been in the lunch queue during a training day and Chalmer had hijacked it - leaving the canteen for the Army cadets where he was designated - in a search for hot dogs.

There meeting had been brief but lasting impressions made as he careered into Lou and caused her to spill her lunch over him yet at the same time spilling a hot dog into his hands. Bemused as she was she let him leave with her hot dog. In return she left with his number and a promise to call him.

It had been love after that.

Or so Zell had been told, though he didn't quite understand how that worked. If he gave lunch to a girl in nursery school she wouldn't let him marry her.

Grown ups were weird like that. Especially all this war business. He didn't understand that either. Why did people want to kill each other? He knew he sometimes wanted to hit the kids who stole his crayons at nursery. Maybe they're all stealing each others crayons. Yes, that was most likely it. But why then didn't they all just give each other them back? Were they lost? Such things were confusing. Adults were so silly sometimes. There were much simpler solutions than going away and fighting to the death. Joining the army should only be so you can fight aliens. At least that's what his Grandfather had told him after he'd retired. Zell was to young to understand his Grandfather's regrets and the true meaning of his words.

Since his parents were away, Zell was staying with his Aunt and Uncle Dincht in their little house on the coast of Balamb. He couldn't' say he was too bothered by it, though he did miss his parents something terrible when he saw the other kids out with their own and knowing he couldn't do the same. But he was happy for most of the time in Balamb. There were plenty of kids his own age around him and his Uncle took him fishing every Sunday when he had a day off work. He could hardly complain with that. His parents may not be there with him but he couldn't say he didn't have people who cared about him. Sometimes it was as if he had two sets of parents.

However, that was all soon to end. Today. Today was the day his mother and father arrived back from duty, having served their three month contract. They were permitted a further three weeks off and then they would return to serve the final three months and terminate their call of duty for the meantime. Excitement was overtaking every sensation Zell's body could feel. He stopped posing as his grandfather and ran to the window of his bedroom, looking out as a he heard a car driving up. But, just as the three trucks, two reds and silver before it, this blue rental continued on down the road, turning into the car park allocated for those sailing to Dollet. It was the wrong colour anyway. An army cadet would return in an army vehicle. His father had promised him that and his father never broke a promise.

He cast his young mind back to the day his parents left. To him, it only seemed a short time ago as it would to any child.

His father, tall, brown haired and friendly – of not sometimes to the point of irritating - in personality had ruffled his son's blonde hair, giving him the great, infectious grin that his son would one day possess. "We'll be home before you know it, kiddo," He had assured him.

"He's right, sweetie," His mother had replied. She bent down to his height and pulled him into a tight embrace. Zell could smell the mustiness of her uniform but also the smell of lavender from her long blonde hair which – normally allowed to flow around her – had been tied into a tight ponytail. There were tears in her eyes though Zell couldn't understand why. If they were going to come back why would she be so sad? "It won't be long. You can have the whole summer with you Aunt and Uncle in Balamb. You want that, don't you? It's like a whole summer long vacation!"

"Sure," Zell said, nodding in emphasis.

His father tossed their luggage – only two small holdalls allowed between them – into the back of the truck and strapped them down. He put an arm around his wife's waist. "We'd better get going before we hold them up any more." Picking up Zell, he tossed him into the air. "That's us kiddo. You have fun on vacation, you hear? And be good for you Aunt and Uncle."

The two adults climbed into the truck and waved at their son as they drove away. Zell waved back with every bit of energy in his arms until at least the truck was out of sight and his vacation had started.

Now, as he waited for that same truck to reappear his vacation was about to end. He was sad, in a way, that he now had to go back to Dollet where his home was. That meant the next time he'd see his Aunt and Uncle would be Christmas and that was a whole two years away to him! He propped his elbows on the windowpane and sighed. He would miss it here just as much as he missed his own home.

The sound of an approaching vehicle made his head perk up once more and this time his excitement reached convergence level as the familiar sight of the khaki camouflage paint of an army truck rumbled into view. He squealed with delight and sprinted downstairs so fast his feet barely touched the ground.

"Auntie Dintch! Auntie Dintch!" He yelled, flying to the door though he wasn't quite tall enough to reach the handle.

His Aunt turned from where she cooking dinner on the stove and smiled lovingly at the child who was like a son to her. "Calm down Zell before you over excite yourself."

"Yeah but there's a truck, Auntie! Ma and Pa are back! They're here, they're really here!"

She spied the eyesore outside her window and frowned. She hated the sight of those trucks in Balamb. They didn't belong in the peaceful down she called her home. Nonetheless, she went to the door with Zell clinging to her apron as if to help her along. As soon as she pulled on the handle and went outside she knew there was something wrong. The air around her seemed heavy, like a burden was lying on it. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled and her heartbeat quickened. In her stomach it felt like the soup she had made for her and Zell had turned to lead. Zell was blissfully unaware of the news she was about to be told. His child's mind couldn't make the connection. It could only compute that the army vehicle at their house meant his mother and father had come home. He was incapable of thinking anything else.

Zell finally sensed something was amiss when, instead of his Ma and Pa coming out of the truck to greet him, a very official man took their place. His back was straight as a ruler giving some indication that he was ranked fairly highly in whatever regiment he oversaw.

"Zell, go inside," His Aunt Dintch told him, her voice think and alien to him.

Doing as he was told (and glad to be out of that man's presence and sorrowful looking eyes) he stood on the sofa where he could get a better view of what was going on outside. He watched as the man took his hat off and started to speak. His calm composure broke after a second or two and Zell wondered why. From the angle of their window to the door he couldn't see his Aunt but he put two and two together to make four and knew his Aunt was replying to whatever news she had been told. Zell couldn't understand what, though. Where were his parents? They should be here and not him! Nothing made sense to him. Why had he been told to go inside? What was that man saying that he couldn't here?

Finally, the man saluted and walked back to the truck. Before climbing in, he took one look back at the house and caught Zell's curious eyes. Zell held his gaze and wondered why he shook his head in sorrow when he turned away. Adults did some strange things sometimes.

Alone together again, Zell looked expectantly as the door opened and his Aunt walked back in, noticeably with less of a spring in her step as when she went out. Her usual cheery face was sombre as she stood looking at Zell. Her mouth opened to say something but then closed again. Zell tipped his head to the side, not understanding the situation that had suddenly evolved before him. She slowly walked to the opposite couch from Zell and sat down.

"Zell," She said eventually. "Come over here. Sit by me and don't say a word. I need to speak now." He did as he was told. "Zell that man was from the army. He was a Sergeant in your parents troupe. He came because you're parents aren't coming home. You see, they were fighting for their country and for you so that we will never be oppressed by the sorceress and sometimes when people are fighting, they don't come home. Instead to go with the Faeries up to a place called Heaven. One day, when you're even older than me you'll go with them too. But they went young." She shook her head and blinked back tears. "Too young."

Zell frowned. "I don't get it. Why won't they come here instead? Don't they want to see me?"

Aunt Dintch pulled Zell closer. "Of course they did but when the Faeries come for you there's nothing you can do. They'll miss you so much but they'll always be with you. In here." She pointed to his heart. "Don't forget that. If they could they would be beside you right now instead of me but it's something that you can't help. It's called death, Zell. But the Faeries come to save you from that. They take you to eternal life where you can meet everyone you love one day."

"Does that mean I have to go home by myself now?"

"No, dear. You'll need to go away for a while though, to a place where other children go when there parents go with the Faeries. It'll only be for a short while. I have some things I have to do before you can come and live with me and your Uncle forever. You see, we're going to have to do a thing called adopting. That means we'll look after you in place of your Ma and Pa. We'll be like your Ma and Pa until you all meet again. Adoption takes time. There's a lot of work to be done for it."

Zell frowned again. So much was happening for him to take in that he didn't understand. "Does that mean I'll be on vacation forever? And why don't you just not adoption me and I'll stay here anyway. I like it here."

"That's just how it's done," Aunt Dintch said, giving him the adult version of 'no more questions because there's no answers'. 'That's just how its done' was a sign that even they didn't understand what he was asking and Zell knew well enough his questions would remain just that for some time. "I need to call your Uncle now and let him know what's happening. The Sergeant has already been in contact with the Government about you. He said he wasn't sure what was going to happen and whether we'd want you to stay here or not so he had to refer you to...to that summer camp we were talking about. He says you'll be leaving tomorrow."

It was then that the tears began to fall and the battle to keep them prisoner was lost. Zell worried when adults cried and wrapped his arms around her ample waste to comfort her. She kept murmuring his name over and over again. He suddenly felt scared. She was scared so he felt like he should be too. Only, he knew it wasn't because of the monsters under his bed or the boogey man in his closet. This was something else, something he'd never encountered before. This was the fear of losing some one you love.

"Zell, I promise you we'll take you home with us soon."

True to her word Zell was taken on the journey to Matron Kramer's orphanage within two days and the battle for custody began shortly afterwards.

* * *

Please review

jellybean-kitty


	8. Irvine

Next chapter is the epilogue and then this stories finished!

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy

Irvine

"Now son," Jack Kinneas whispered, laying as close to the ground as possible, "you need to make yourself smaller than you've ever been before. These creatures are used to being hunted and they can pick out a human from nearly everywhere be it their scent, their trail or even if they see them that's why-"

"You lay downwind from them," Irvine answered irritably. "I know."

Jack looked at his son from the corner of his eye, keeping one on the deer grazing in front of them. "Alright, alright. I get it. If you want to try it on your own go ahead. This long grass will cover us from sight but can you cock your gun without alerting your target?"

Although he was only seven years old, Irvine Kinneas was a talented gunman, just like his father. However he was also headstrong and desperate to show off what he knew. Up until now he hadn't had the chance to try and kill his own game and wanted badly to prove he had picked up enough skills from his hunting lessons to show his father he could do it too.

Irvine's breathing grew shallow as he tried to make himself not a person but a part of the ground he was lying on. The deer – a doe – was oblivious to their presence as he took aim at her neck, the point his father called the 'kill spot'. It was the area you had a better chance of hitting and causing the most damage. Aim for the head and there's a great chance you'd miss. Aim for the rear and there's an even greater chance the deer won't go down. Gently, Irvine cocked the gun with enough pressure so that the click was barely audible to even him. He felt his father's eyes on him, impressed. Letting instinct take over, Irvine pulled the trigger and watched as the bullet flew from his rifle and directly into the target. The doe cried out in pain – a sound that Irvine always hated to hear – and after a few steps in all different directions, it went down.

Jack clapped his son on the shoulder. "Well I'll be! First try and you took down a big one!" He hollered in pride and strolled over to the doe, admiring his son's kill. He took out his knife and handed it to Irvine. "It's your prize you can do the honours."

Irvine took it from him and knelt down beside the deer. Gently (he wasn't sure why but he thought it had something to do with the creature's beauty) he cut the doe's throat to ensure it was dead and wasn't going to kick back to life as father and son carried it home. They had to sit awhile and wait for the blood to finish its course so that they didn't leave a trail for a grizzly to follow and once it had Jack tied the deer's hooves together and strung it over his strong back.

"We'll go home now and make some venison pie. And I'll need you to run to the Tucker farm with five pounds of the meat. I promised them some of my next catch and what they're offering for it isn't cheap either. You'll do that for me after supper boy?"

Irvine nodded. "Sure paw."

"You did well today, kid," Jack said. "Really well. Why, at your age I could barely even hold that thing let alone shoot it. In fact, I could bet you that there isn't another kid this side of Galbedia who can shoot like you. I wager that that's going to make you famous some day. You'll be the best sharpshooter there ever was. After all its in your blood."

"In my blood?" Irvine questioned. "Just cause we're a hunting family doesn't mean we're sharpshooters paw."

Jack laughed. "No, I guess it doesn't. But other things do. Things I'll tell you all about when you're older."

'When you're older'. Those three words were the bane of Irvine's young life. There was so much he was going to be told 'when you're older'. As far a he was aware every single time he woke up in the morning he was older. Just how much older did you have to be before it came to that time of 'when you're older'?

Jack laughed again when he saw Irvine's scowl. "Well you may not like that answer but its the only one you're getting so chin up, eh?"

Irvine looked at his father reproachfully but it didn't last long. Anger towards his father never did. It couldn't. With it being only the two of them sharing their log cabin Irvine figured they just had to get on no matter how much his cheery disposition annoyed him or how unfair he could be. Irvine was never sure what had happened to make it just the two of them. He used to have an older brother and his mother but one day, when picking him up from school, his father had taken him out here. Any questions he'd asked would be answered 'when you're older'. Since then his name had been changed, his school had been changed and the way he lived had been changed. The only thing that hadn't gotten different was the way his father constantly seemed happy and Irvine's own constant interest in rifles and hunting.

Every day his father took him out and explained the ins and outs of rifling (what he called it) and the best way to take down an animal: deer's necks, Rabbits middle's, fox's hind ect. Everyday Irvine got more and more practise shooting at things like cans on fences, targets set up by his father. It was only today that he had been allowed to shoot anything living. Irvine had wondered why this was. He would have been ready to take a shot months ago. When he'd asked his father about this, instead of taking the easy way out he had actually gotten an answer. He had been told that there was a significant difference in shooting cans and shooting something that was alive. When you took the life of a creature it could be a daunting experience and one that shouldn't be taken for granted. His father had said life was a precious thing and that's why he only lets himself or Irvine shoot game when they need it. Killing game for fun, he said, was barbaric and unnecessary. If humans wanted to kill for fun it would be more productive if they killed themselves.

Jack Kinneas wasn't a man who liked to hear his own voice and a speech like that was something of a treasure to Irvine. No matter how much the man drove him crazy, he always liked to know his father's thoughts and opinions. He wasn't the smartest of men but Irvine thought him one of the wisest, a realisation that wouldn't come to him until he was approaching adulthood and reminiscing on his younger days, many years after his father's death.

"Dad," Irvine asked when they were approaching the house, "just when is it that I'll be older?"

Irvine half expected Jack to laugh but instead his features turned grave. "Until the last possible minutes. There's things you have to know but God dammit its things you shouldn't. If things had turned out different you and I wouldn't be living like this. Believe me. But because they didn't I'm going to have to tell you things no father should have to tell his son." A chill went up Irvine's back and he found this strange. It was a beautiful summer day and the sun was as warm as ever. "I'll only tell you because I don't think I could let you grow up without knowing."

Irvine frowned again but said nothing as his father went into their game shed and dropped their kill on the table used to prepare the meat. For some reason Irvine never like it when they cut up the animals even though it was the only real way they could provide for themselves. Jack Kinneas never went into the nearby town unless he had to and would only get in touch with neighbors when their money was in danger of running out. For Irvine this was just another mystery that he lived with.

After the meat was cut, prepared and salted for storage, Jack took several pieces. Five were wrapped in preparation for delivery and two were taken into their house to cook for their dinner. All throughout Jack hummed a tune that Irvine was familiar with. He remembered its name was 'Eyes on Me' although he didn't know the singer. It had been a favourite of his mother's when it had first came out.

They weren't even halfway through cooking when there was a knock on the door. Jack immediately grabbed the cooking knife like it was a natural reflex. He quickly cast an uneasy look at Irvine. Visitors to their house didn't come often. In fact, Irvine could count the number of visitors on one hand. Jack slowly and quietly walked to the door – with the silence and stealth of an assassin – and looked through their peep hole. Irvine heard the breath catch in Jack's throat and he quickly grabbed his rifle and opened the door, slipping outside and shutting it behind him. The voices were quiet at first, hushed. Irvine couldn't make out what they were saying. Then they got louder and immediately incoherent as the two voices began to shout over each other. Irvine dashed to the kitchen window to see what was going on, feeling his heart pounding in fear. He couldn't see his father, only the other man and even then it was only his body. His face was hidden by the shadows of their porch. Suddenly the man went for the pistol strapped to the holster by his side but another shot rang out first and the body crumpled to the floor. Irvine scrambled away from the window in horror and backed against the wall as his father's heavy boots clumped against the floor, the need to stealth vanished.

His bleary eyes looked at Irvine. "Did you see what happened?"

He nodded.

"Sit down," Jack commanded. "I'm going to tell you everything. There's not much time and I want you to be the hell out of here before..." He sighed as Irvine sat at the table opposite him and he lit up a cigarette, taking a long draw before he began to speak again. "Here it goes. Years ago, years before I even met you mother I worked as a mercenary for the Deling City mafia. They told me who they wanted rid of and I pulled the trigger, leaving no evidence of who, what or why. I've killed many important people and many more unimportant people. Back then I was young and it all seemed like a game to me. The money wasn't bad either." He took another draw. "Then the Government under President Deling heard about me and decided they could make use of my skills. So they tracked me down and made me an offer I couldn't refuse. They told me if I took out my bosses they would grant me immunity and protection plus a big sum of money any man would gladly retire for. However, I may have been young but I was old enough to see the greater good. Sure, the mafia may have been the causes on many attacks on Deling City and the president's men but when the government would let their people starve it was them that kept food on their tables. Naturally I declined. What they offered me was more than I was sure I would ever earn from my bosses but the cost was too great. Getting all this kid?"

Irvine nodded.

"I met your mother and took an unofficial retirement as we raised you and your brother. I would do odd jobs for the mafia and in return they would leave me be for months on end. By that time Deling's feet were getting itchy. He knew that I could take him out easily if I was given the word. I think what finally made him crack was when I shot his advisor at a speech ceremony. There were reasons behind this but I won't go into details. In short, Deling panicked. He found me again and tried to bargain with me. Again I said no. I was told then that I would regret it.

"If I'd had the sense back then I probably would have assassinated him. Fee or no. But I had a family and you were more important. Foolishly thinking he was bluffing I let it drift from my mind. Then I went home one day to see men I recognised from Deling's protection unit leaving the house. When I went in I found your mother and brother. They'd been given a quick death, thankfully, but one they didn't deserve. After that I took you and we moved out here where I figure we'd be safe."

"But they've found us."

Jack looked at his son. "Yes. They have. And they'll be back soon. That man out there was only a warning. I'm already dead, son, and if they find you here they'll kill you too." He stubbed out his cigarette on the table and it left a nasty looking burn. "So, I want you to go Tucker farm and tell Bill that its happened. He'll know what I mean because years ago he was in the same position as me only he took out his enemies like any smart man would do. Have you got that?"

Irvine shook his head, tears beginning to run. "I'm not going. I'll stay here with you. You'll be fine!" He ran to his father's knee and grabbed him, sobbing into his shirt.

"I love you, you know. We wouldn't be here if I didn't. That's why you've got to go. You've got this one chance to live, kid. Be a good boy and do it. Be who you want to be just don't make the same mistakes I have. Hopefully I've taught you enough in this small portion of you life for you to be whatever you want to be but just don't let your life end like mine." He set Irvine down and nudged him gently on the back. "Don't look back. God knows what you'll see. Go!"

Tears streaming, Irvine ran from his house, from his father and from his life before. He never saw any of it again.

* * *

Please review!

jellybean-kitty


	9. Epilogue

This is the actual final chapter of Into The Past:p I think I got my chapters jumbled up so thanks Lover of All That Is Animated for pointing that out:P

If anyone's still reading this, hope you like this brief conclusion!

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy

Epilogue

The seven teenagers woke with a start in the various positions in which they'd fallen asleep. Most looked around at the other, curious to know what they'd all seen in their dreams. Some stared into the space before them and at no one else, obviously unnerved by their past and the truth they'd learned from it.

"You know," Selphie said quietly. "Sometimes I think you should be kind of grateful that the GF wipe your memory. 'Cause then you don't have to see things that children should never see. Maybe you forget things because you want to forget them."

"I don't know," Quistis replied. "When do you draw the line? You forgot your entire childhood before Edea's didn't you? You wouldn't have known what your parents looked like, who they were or how much they loved you. Surely you feel a little better knowing that it doesn't matter how they died or if they died. It's enough to know that they made sacrifices because they loved you enough to let you go."

Irvine nodded. "I'm going to guess mine isn't the only parent to die trying to protect his kid, right? God, as sad as it is to think about it – and I never did forget because I barely use GF as it is – doesn't it make you feel more alive knowing that some one loved you enough to die for you? It's like...whoa."

"Seifer?" Rinoa asked softly. "Are you alright?"

"I didn't ask to know because I didn't want to know." He pointed a finger at Ellone. "You've always known this and yet you still try to show me what I don't want to see. Why don't you just butt out of people's lives when they don't want you in them? Just let the past be the past. Let me forget it. I don't want to know."

"Seifer..." Ellone whispered but he was gone.

"Did you see it?" Squall asked suddenly.

She looked at Squall and slowly replied, "yes".

"Was it as bad as he seems to think?"

"It was cruel," she replied after a few moments of silence. "What happened to his parents was cruel. His mother was a sorceress. She was burned as a witch."

"Jesus," Zell murmured.

"But as he says, its in the past. When he's had more time to think things over he'll realise what's really important."

"Which is...?"

She smiled softly at Zell. "If I tell you that then the whole point of this experience will be ruined. You need to figure that out on your own."

* * *

Please review!

jellybean-kitty


End file.
